Splendor Duel: The Counterfeiters
Splendor Duel: The Counterfeiters Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Expansion Overview
By adding the Counterfeiter cards, you can unlock new tricky and clever strategies, allowing you to twist the usual rules of the game, including using glassware in place of true gems, as well as bribing important officials for royal favors! New Royal cards offer players more choices and lead them towards different paths to victory.
Contents
- 4 Purple tokens (Glassware)
- 8 Royal cards
- 17 Counterfeiter cards
Additions to Setup
When playing Splendor Duel with this expansion, the setup steps below are modified as follows:
- Add the following to step 2: After revealing the cards, shuffle the Counterfeiter cards into a deck, place it above the three regular decks, and reveal 3 Counterfeiter cards in a row between the level-3 cards (the three-dot level marker) and the Victory tile.
- Replace step 3 as follows: Place the board below the pyramid. Place the 25 tokens from the base game into the bag, along with the 4 Glassware tokens from this expansion, then randomly fill the board, starting with the central space and following the printed spiral. Thus, 4 random tokens will start the game in the bag.
- Replace step 5 as follows: Shuffle all 12 Royal cards (from both the base game and expansion) then reveal 4 cards below the board. Keep the remaining cards in a deck next to the 4 revealed Royal cards.
Player Turn
All actions remain the same, with the following changes:
Optional Actions
1 - Use a Privilege: You can take 1 Glassware token from the board when using the Use a Privilege action.
Mandatory Action
- Take up to 3 tokens: Glassware tokens are treated as Gem and/or Pearl tokens. If you use this action to take 3 Glassware tokens, your opponent takes 1 Privilege.
- Take 1 Gold token and reserve 1 Jewel card: Counterfeiter cards are not Jewel cards and cannot be reserved.
A new mandatory action is available:
- Purchase 1 Counterfeiter card: Choose 1 of the 3 face-up Counterfeiter cards, pay its cost in tokens (as depicted on the bottom left of the card, which will always include at least 1 Glassware token), and place that card in front of you. Gold tokens are wild and can be used in place of any Gem, Pearl, or Glassware token. Place spent tokens in the bag. Replace the purchased card with the top card of the Counterfeiter deck.
The insert's illustration labels the card's Ability (the printed ability icon, top of the card) and its Cost (the token cost, bottom left).
Counterfeiter Card Abilities
Each Counterfeiter card can only be used once during your turn. However, you can use the ability of multiple Counterfeiter cards on your turn.
Gold tokens can be used as substitutes for Glassware tokens, in addition to Gem and/or Pearl tokens. When taking a token from an opponent, a Glassware token can be taken instead of a Gem or Pearl token.
- During a Purchase 1 Jewel card or Purchase 1 Counterfeiter card action, you may spend up to 2 Glassware tokens to reduce the cost of the color shown by 2 for each Glassware token spent.
- During a Purchase 1 Jewel card or Purchase 1 Counterfeiter card action, you may spend up to 2 Glassware tokens to reduce the cost of any color by 1 for each Glassware token spent. When spending 2 Glassware tokens, each cost reduction can be for the same color or different colors.
- During a Purchase 1 Jewel card or Purchase 1 Counterfeiter card action, you may spend 2 Glassware tokens to reduce the cost of any single color by 3.
- During a Purchase 1 Jewel card or Purchase 1 Counterfeiter card action, you may spend 1 Glassware token to reduce the Pearl cost by 1.
- When Using a Privilege, take 2 Gem, Pearl, and/or Glassware tokens of your choice from the board instead of 1. Note: Since you may only use this ability once per turn, if you use more than 1 Privilege, only the first one will let you take 2 tokens; any other Privileges will only let you take 1 token as usual.
- At the end of your turn, before checking the token limit, spend a Glassware token and return a Privilege to immediately take another turn.
- At the end of your turn, before checking the token limit, spend a Glassware token and return a Privilege to take 1 Gem, Pearl, or Glassware token from your opponent.
- At the end of your turn, before checking the token limit, you may spend Glassware to take 1 of the available Royal cards. The cost to use this ability is 1 Glassware token plus 1 Glassware token for each Royal card you already own. Replace the card with the top card of the Royal card deck. Example: You've previously taken a Royal card in the usual way. You wish to use the ability of this card to take another one. You must spend 2 Glassware tokens to take the card, after which you will replace it with a new one. Note: Royal cards taken after acquiring enough Crowns are not replaced.
- When checking the 10-token limit at the end of your turn, ignore your Glassware tokens; they do not count against this limit.
- When you take this card, you immediately acquire 2 Crowns. This might allow you to take 1 Royal card or fulfill a Victory condition.
- You can have up to 5 reserved cards instead of 3. Also, when doing the Take 1 Gold token and reserve 1 Jewel card action, you may reserve up to 2 cards instead of 1; each card can be taken from any level or drawn from any of the 3 decks.
Royal Card Abilities
Each of the new Royal cards has an ability which is resolved immediately when the card is taken, as per the normal rules. However, some of these cards change the victory conditions, so be sure to check these often!
- Reserve a card from any deck or any level, even if no Gold token is available on the board, replacing it if needed. Do not take a Gold token. If you already have the maximum number of reserved cards, skip this effect.
- Take a Gold token from the board, if one is available. Do not reserve a card.
- If you have 9 or more Prestige points on cards of the same bonus color, you win.
- If you have 9 or more Crowns, you win.
- Take 1 face-up Counterfeiter card of your choice (at no cost) and replace it; or reveal the top card of the Counterfeiter deck and take it (at no cost).
- Take up to 4 tokens from the board; they must all be of a single color, all Glassware, or all Pearls, but not gold.
- Take up to 2 tokens at random from the bag. The tokens can be of any kind (including gold).
- Take up to 3 tokens of your choice from the board (except gold).
Reminder: Only the Royal cards taken with the Counterfeiter card are replaced!
End of Player Turn
Glassware tokens count as tokens against the 10-token limit at the end of your turn, except where a Counterfeiter card ability above says otherwise (see "When checking the 10-token limit at the end of your turn, ignore your Glassware tokens").